For 2025, the RHS Sustainable Excellence Awards have expanded to cover three categories, namely: RHS Sustainable Garden Product of the Year; RHS Sustainable Lifestyle Product of the Year and RHS Sustainable Business of the Year.
The judging panel consists of Chris Harrop, Deborah Meaden and Andree Davies and they will select the winners of each category on Monday, the 19th of May at the RHS Experience stand. All the finalists are exhibiting at this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show.
RHS Chelsea Sustainable Garden Product of the Year
- Garden Scoop by Sneeboer Trading BV: The latest innovation by Sneeboer of horticultural implements. This crafted trowel is specifically engineered for the precise distribution of loose garden materials including compost, mulch, and wood clippings. The dimensions of the scoop make it particularly suitable for filling small planting vessels for flowers, herbs, shrubs, and ornamentals.
- Dipping Tank by the Dipping Tank Company: A modern alternative to the water butt, a better way of making use of the critical resource, rainwater. Contemporary in style, the dipping tank provides an effective method to store harvested rainwater, whilst also functioning as a raised pond or place to grow aquatic, moisture loving plants.
- Gardener’s Seasonal Bundle by twool: To celebrate 15 years of sustainability in gardening, twool released its sustainable Gardener’s Seasonal Bundle which has everything needed for a successful growing season, for both seasoned and novice gardener. The bundle contains, sustainable tree and shrub tie, 100m spool of twool twine, and sustainable garden net (2x2m).
RHS Chelsea Sustainable Lifestyle Product of the Year
- RHS Caption Recycled Doormat by Atlantic Mats: The RHS Bloom Collection ‘Caption’ doormat is made in the UK from recycled materials diverted from landfill. Part of the ‘Ocean Mat’ range of sustainable doormats and runners, the dirt-trapping mat is machine washable, long-lasting and comes with a 5 year guarantee for 5. For indoor use, the mat provides both a decorative and functional benefit, trapping wet and dirt to keep floors cleaner for longer.
- Hand Wash Compostable Refill Pouch by Bramley: Their best selling product for 15 years, the Bramley Hand Wash is sold in many different sustainable formats including glass and biopolymer plastic bottles, but the compostable refill pouch delivers the most significant environmental improvement. The refill pouch is made from 100% compostable materials and starts to decompose within 5 days of filling.
- MONC Eyewear by MONC: Makers of sustainable sunglasses and spectacles, MONC’s eyewear are made from a bio acetate that is free from fossil fuel-based plasticisers, reducing reliance on petroleum-derived materials. Mineral glass lenses significantly decrease plastic waste compared to conventional alternatives. By sourcing materials and manufacturing in the same region of Italy, the company can minimise their carbon footprint. The mycelium packaging biodegrades within 45 days, actively nourishing the soil rather than adding to landfill waste.
RHS Chelsea Sustainable Business of the Year
- Bamford: Part of the Bamford Collection, the company continues to demonstrate commitment to sustainability through measurable actions, such as implementing energy-saving plans, composting food waste as part of the Collection’s zero waste policy and shifting to more sustainable fuel sources. Looking to the future, the Bamford strategy includes ambitious environmental targets, expanding renewable energy, and enhancing circular initiatives. The company has embedded sustainability across all aspects of the business, highlighting that environmental responsibility and business growth can go hand in hand.
- Gaze Burvill: Luxury outdoor furniture maker, Gaze Burvill work towards creating for the future, placing care for the environment at the centre of their work, from design and manufacture to running the business. Their commitment to sustainability is not just a part of the operations, as a B Corp it’s a fundamental aspect of the company’s identity and has been independently certified. Gaze Burvill have embraced the responsibility to challenge continually, striving to do better for the planet in everything that they do.
- POTR: Founded on the principle of taking a ground up, lifecycle approach to sustainability both in the products they design and how the business is operated. Where many businesses operate in a retrospective manner when it comes to sustainability, viewing it as an afterthought, placing profits before planet, POTR have taken a fundamentally different approach. Starting with their first product, the POTR Pot, each aspect of the design was considered to ensure the business model was built around operating in the most sustainable way possible, laying the foundations for a business which not only has a minimal impact on the environment, but a business which drives positive change.
- Sneeboer Trading BV: The Dutch garden tool manufacturer still makes garden tools the old-fashioned way: built to last a lifetime and be passed down to children and grandchildren. Each tool is hand made by real craftspeople who take pride in their work, using techniques passed down through four generations of the family business. The company uses responsibly sourced ash wood for handles and high-quality stainless steel that won’t rust or fail. Tools are repaired rather than replaced. Customers are taught how to care for their tools, to ensure they last even longer. The most sustainable tool is the one you never need to replace.
